Boost in bid for more CCTV and extra police officers to fight crime
A campaign for CCTV cameras and extra police officers to tackle violence and drug related crime in a town centre has been given a boost.
Newtown Town Council has given its unanimous support to a petition from parents of a teenager who was attacked earlier this month, one of a number of recent incidents.
Duncan and Jacci Foulkes, who launched their campaign following an unprovoked attack on their son, Danny, in the early hours of October 7, were invited to attend Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn Town Council’s monthly meeting on Monday.
Mr Foulkes told the council that an online petition supporting the campaign had been signed by 2,300 people in 24 hours which demonstrated the strength of public feeling on the issue.
He said that Dyfed Powys Police and Crime Commissioner, Dafydd Llywelyn had pledged to spend £2m on installing high definition CCTV cameras in 14 towns, one of which was Newtown. Due to the recent spate of violent incidents in Newtown, he would prioritise its cameras.
Mr Foulkes said he had hoped to be able to tell the meeting how much the cameras would cost and how much Newtown would be asked to contribute, but that information was not yet available. Mr Llywelyn plans to share the information when he addresses the town council next month.
He asked the town council to write to Mr Llywelyn calling for CCTV to be reinstated and for extra resources to be made available for more police officers in Newtown.
Town Mayor Councillor Sue Newham said the council had decided in the past that it could not afford the £40,000 costs of replacing the CCTV cameras. However, she welcomed the news that Mr Llywelyn was now supporting the reinstatement of cameras.
Councillor Joy Jones said the quality of images captured by the town’s original CCTV cameras was “horrendous”. She said it was important that the town had new CCTV cameras and welcomed news that Mr Llywelyn was making Newtown a priority.
She also called for more front line police officers in the town and for more visible policing of the streets and estates, which would help them gather information and discourage crime.
Afterwards, Mr and Mrs Foulkes said they were grateful for the council’s unanimous support but stressed that they would not be happy until the campaign’s objectives had been achieved.
“We have found that we are pushing at an open door with this campaign, as everyone we have spoken to has been supportive,” said Mr Foulkes. “The law abiding people of Newtown have made it clear by signing the petition and with their messages of support that they want action to improve public safety in the town, particularly at night."
